RAJSHAHI, Dec 13, 2018 (BSS)- Farmers and others concerned are hopeful
about a good potato yield in the region during the current season as overall
climatic condition remains favorable for the farming since its initial stage.
With the hope of making profit like the previous seasons, the farmers are
now very busy in various field level works like land preparation, seed-sowing
of late varieties, nursing of the growing plants and harvesting and marketing
of the early varieties everywhere in eight districts under the division.
Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has set a target of producing
more than 45.67 lakh tonnes of potato from 1.68 lakh hectares of land in the
Rajshahi division.
Currently, early variety potato has appeared in the local markets in plenty
with more or less better prices benefiting the growers in the region, markets
sources said.
“I am getting profit financially after cultivating advance variety of
potato on five bigha of land. The potato farming has made my family happy,”
said Abdul Maleque, a farmer of Baosha village under Bagha Upazila in
Rajshahi district.
He mentioned that both yield and market price is almost satisfactory. Babul
Dewan, a farmer of a Char village under the same upazila, says many farmers
are seen cultivating potato in char areas of Padma River as they got the
taste of profit of the cast crop farming.
Golam Rasul, a farmer of Darusha village under Paba Upazila, said both
acreage and yield were boosted up in the wake of a favorable climatic
condition and availability of standard seed in the region.
This season, he along with his sons cultivated potato on around 150 bighas
of land. He said, “We are very much optimistic about our outcomes as the
weather was absolutely supportive”.
Rasul further said there is a need of enhancing the number of cold storages
for betterment of the potato growers. Potato farming has now been expanded to
the dried lands in the vast Barind tract with massive promotion of commercial
farming as a result of irrigation facilities promoted by the Barind
Multipurpose Development Authorities (BMDA).
Mozur-E-Mawla, Upazila Agriculture Officer, said the farmers are expecting
a better yield as there was no major natural calamity that can damage its
outputs.
Most of the growers’ harvested better yields of potato in last three to
four years and they also obtained expected sale proceeds in the harvesting
stage.
“I had sold out an 85-kg potato bag at Taka 800 to 850 in previous season,
said Ziarul Haque, a farmer of Baya village.
Mustafizur Rahman, additional director of DAE, said the officials, experts
and other organisations concerned have been providing necessary suggestions
to the farmers to face the cold situation so that the growing potato fields
are not affected by late blight disease.
He says the DAE, Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation, Bangladesh
Agriculture Research Institute, other agri-related departments and commercial
banks are assisting the farmers to make the extensive potato farming program
a success.
Many of the farmers said potato farming could become more profitable if
adequate preservation facilities were ensured and potato-based agro-
industries are set up besides enhancing exports.